William Arthur Brownell (May 19, 1895 – May 28, 1977) was an American educational psychologist.
Early life
Brownell was born in Smethport, Pennsylvania on May 19, 1895. He graduated from Allegheny College in 1917. He received a Ph.D. in 1926 from the University of Chicago.
Academic career
From 1930 to 1949 he was a professor of educational psychology at Duke University, where he did his most important research.
From 1950 to his retirement in 1962 he was the Dean of the University of California, Berkeley Graduate School of Education.
While at Berkeley he wrote he wrote the elementary school Math textbooks used by many states, including California and Hawaii.
In 1965 he received the E. L. Thorndike Award.
Personal life
He married Kathryn K. (1903-2001) and they had three children.